‘Batman v Superman’ has record Thursday at box office

If Warner Bros. needed any proof that the mixed-to-negative reviews for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice wouldn’t matter to fans, the early box office numbers will ease the studio’s nerves.

The film, directed by Zack Snyder and a follow-up to 2013’s Man of Steel, grossed a whopping $27.7 million from preview screenings, notes The Hollywood Reporter. While this is just the seventh best preview night ever (and far behind Star Wars: The Force Awakens‘ record $57 million preview night), it was the best Thursday preview night ever on Easter weekend. Last year’s Furious 7 previously held the record when it took in $15.8 million.

Audiences were also flocking to see the movie in IMAX, which accounted for $3.6 million of its total.

BvS is expected to make at least $160 million and would be a massive disappointment if it makes less. It will be interesting to see if the film doesn’t hit expectations thanks to low critical approval, but if the Rotten Tomatoes audience score means anything, the reviews shouldn’t matter.

Also hitting theaters this weekend is Universal’s long-awaited sequel to the 2002 hit My Big Fat Greek Wedding. The sequel opened to $1.02 million Thursday night.

image: Warner Bros.

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Daniel S Levine

Daniel Levine is a big Star Wars fan and a love of movies. He also watches too much TV. He is a graduate of Hofstra University.